


Piece of Mind

by stargatefan_archivist



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Drama, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-31
Updated: 2013-12-31
Packaged: 2018-10-07 03:15:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10351125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stargatefan_archivist/pseuds/stargatefan_archivist
Summary: Spoilers: "The Fifth Race", "A Matter of Time", minor ones for "TBFtGoG","Into the Fire" and "Fair Game".Summary: Jack meets Frank Cromwell in an alternate universe.  O dear...





	

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Yuma, the archivist: this work was originally archived at [Stargatefan.com](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Stargatefan.com). To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [StargateFan Archive Collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/StargateFan_Archive_Collection).

Piece of Mind

##  Piece of Mind 

##### Written by Corine   
Comments? Write to us at [Corine57@HOTMAIL.COM](mailto:Corine57@HOTMAIL.COM)

( **On P4R-548** ).

Colonel Jack O’Neill, teamleader of SG1, was seated near their camp. He was a little bored. They had gated to this planet two days ago. They had explored a major part of it, but had found nothing so far. Until today. 

In the afternoon they had discovered some remnants of what seemed to have been a village. It had not taken Jack long to determine that the place was completely abandoned, leaving nothing much of interest for him. Captain Samantha Carter and Doctor Daniel Jackson, SG1's archaeologist and linguist, had started to investigate the place. Jack had decided they would spent the night and with Teal'c's help, he had set up their camp. Now he noticed Sam was taking some mineral samples and Daniel was digging. Rocks, rocks and rocks. Or artefacts, as Daniel would like to call them. Right. Scientists…

Teal’c was keeping guard as always. No way a sneaky Goa’uld or group of Jaffa would surprise them with Teal’c on guard. Jack could always count on that. 

So that had left him to make himself useful, rather than just doing nothing. Oh, yeah, he had made coffee. Lots of it, Daniel had had six cups at least. He would fix their meals later on. A big decision to make; macaroni with cheese, or macaroni with ham? He had arranged a fireplace, they could light a fire when needed; everything was ready. He had also checked and cleaned his guns; a job you should take time for. And he had plenty of that, that’s for sure. No Daniel to have arguments with, no Sam to listen to explanations he wouldn’t understand anyway. No, THEY were busy. Very busy. Very, very excited too; he could tell by the way Daniel was bend over some rock, or whatever, forgetting about the world around him. At least he wouldn’t have to be afraid to lose the kid. Daniel was definitely not gonna wander off this time! Sam was excited too, no doubt about that. The way Sam was filling her little bottles with stuff he couldn’t possibly find interesting told him all he needed to know. She was shaking them carefully, watching them like she expected them to explode or something. He just didn’t know yet whether he wanted her to explain it all over dinner, or not.

So Jack was bored. He had enjoyed the sun, the opportunity to relax and do nothing for a change, but now it was getting on his nerves. He glanced at Teal’c. There was no way of telling how bored the Jaffa was at this moment. His face was, well, how it always was. Stoic. Jack wished he had a waterhose. He would love to start a waterfight with the big Jaffa. He laughed silently at the image in his mind of the surprised raise of brows of Teal’c’s face; it would be SO funny.

But he had no waterhose. Nor did he want to spoil the afternoon for Sam and Daniel. He was glad for them to have this opportunity. They deserved it. The last few missions had been rough on all of them. Yeah, no matter how bored he was, he would give them all the time they needed. If they wanted, he would spend all day tomorrow on this place too. He could always hike around a little bit; explore the north on his own. That would be nice. Scientists loved to explore surroundings like this; he loved to wander off on his own. He didn’t get that chance too often. It seemed like a good idea. Always good for his soul, a hike through nature all by himself. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Daniel and Sam had explored all the buildings and met in the centre of the village. "Nothing. Completely abandoned. What did you find?" Carter asked him.

"Nothing at all. Whoever lived here sure left no traces. That kind of makes you conclude that they didn't have to leave this place in a hurry. They took their belongings with them."

"You're right. Have you noticed the way they built this place? Everything is round." Sam noted, looking over her shoulder.

"Yeah, that is just so strange. It doesn't fit anything I recall from ancient texts. Come and take a look at this place," Daniel motioned Sam to follow him. He led her to the remains of a huge building on one side of the village.

"What do you think of this place?" he asked her, showing her what he had found. This particular building had no walls left, at least not higher than 2 ft. There was a huge pit in the middle, about 6 ft deep, also round. All around the pit were the remains of what could have been benches. On one side of the building the area was divided in two small rooms.

"It looks like the public swimming pool to me… " Sam figured, not really expecting this to be the answer.

"Exactly! Remember the Romans used to have bathing places? I think this is the same thing. The people all bathed together here. Look over here, beneath, see! That's were they got their water from. A connection to a well or something. So these people gathered for their bath. A social aspect of their life. What can we learn from their homes?" Daniel was more talking to himself now. He walked over to one of the homes, with Sam on his heels.

"See… they're not big. I haven't found houses that were divided in more than two rooms, so that means whole families must have shared one room to live and sleep in, the other for storage I guess… Looks to me that most of their lives were spent outside. Now how about their meals? Did every family eat on his own, or was that a social gathering for the whole community as well?" Daniel looked around, not really finding anything to answer his question with.

"Do you have any idea why they have left this place?" Sam asked. 

"No, I wouldn’t know yet. Do you have theories on that?" Daniel stood still, crossed his arms and looked at her.

"Okay. We figured they didn't leave in a hurry. So they were not forced to leave. That kind of rules out battles and deadly diseases. We have seen plenty of water on this planet, so my first guess would be nutrition. Either nothing left to hunt or the land had lost its fertility. I think I will start taking ground samples to figure that out."

"Great idea. I think I'm going to look around more, see if I can figure out other habits of those people."

With that they each continued their own research.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Teal’c stood still and looked around. Nothing moved an inch without him noticing it. Teal’c was happy to see his colleagues work with great enthusiasm. They were completely out of it, counting on him to watch their backs. Which of course he did. With the greatest pleasure. He was proud of their trust in him.

Teal’c had scanned the remnants of the village, but nothing was familiar to him. It didn’t look Goa’uld to him. Nor were there signs of fights. So it was really up to Daniel, to figure out what kind of people have lived here and why they had abandoned this place. He was of no help there, but he could stand guard. He didn’t need the rest, and he figured his CO could use it, after the latest mission. Unfortunately he could already tell that his CO was getting bored of it. O’Neill was a man of action, as was he. Only he had patience, which could not be said about O’Neill.

He had gratefully excepted the canteen of water, O’Neill had brought him. O'Neill had also suggested changing guard, but he had turned the offer down. He would rather walk around a little, watching the area, than fixing the dinner. O’Neill was so much better at that. On the last mission, Teal’c had actually burned a meal and was gently told not to take his turn in preparing dinner any time soon, which he didn’t think was so bad.

He wished he had something to distract his CO with, to prevent him from becoming too bored. He instinctively knew that O’Neill wouldn’t drag Captain Carter and Daniel Jackson away from this location too soon, despite his own discomfort. It would have been nice, if O’Neill could teach him to play chess or something. But that was not an option. That would have to wait until they were back on earth. He sighed. Yes, it was going to be a long afternoon and even a longer day tomorrow, for his CO.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After having enjoyed lots of sunshine and drinking lots of coffee, Jack decided it was nearly time for some macaroni with cheese. Or rather, his stomach did. Jack got to his feet to light the fire. Having that accomplished, he gathered all the supplies around him and started to fix their dinner.

Jack soon had everything finished. He walked over to the spot where Daniel and Sam were and yelled: "Okay kids, dinner is ready, don’t let it get cold!"

He was surprised when they responded so quickly. Jack was expecting to have to call them at least three times. They must be hungry, he figured.

The team gathered around the fire. Daniel still had this look over him, like he couldn’t believe his luck 

"Welcome to O’Neill’s Italian specialities. Anybody care for some macaroni with cheese tonight?" Jack quipped, getting ready to hand out the meals.

"Thank you, Jack. I am starving…." Daniel answered. He gladly accepted the plate that was being held in front of him.

"Thanks, Sir." Sam also took her plate.

"O’Neill. You are a great cook," Teal’c didn’t move a muscle in his face. Jack glared at him. He grinned and handed the Jaffa his plate. 

They all enjoyed their meal. When he was almost finished, Jack asked: "Well, Daniel? Having fun around this place? Tell us what you found." He knew the kid was anxious to share his knowledge.

Daniel’s face lit up once again. "Yes, Jack. This is all very interesting. You know we found no signs of life on this planet so far? Yet here it is. Ruins of what has to have been some sort of village. Somehow it seems to have been built by a primitive nation, but still…" He took the last bite of his meal, grabbed his coffee and settled back. He absently ran his hand through his hair.

"There are no signs of anything related to Goa’uld, as far as I can tell. It definitely looks too primitive for that. There are also no signs of fights, so I believe the inhabitants left of their own free will. What do you think, Teal’c?" Daniel looked at the big Jaffa, wondering if Teal’c agreed with this.

Teal’c nodded. "I also think the Goa’uld have not visited this place."

Sam agreed too. "That leaves us with some interesting questions. Why have they built their village on this particular spot. Why did they leave this place, and how? Did they have the knowledge to use the Stargate? Where are they?" She helplessly raised her hands in the air.

"Couldn’t they have gone up north? We haven’t explored a lot in that direction yet?" Jack wondered.

Daniel started again. "Maybe. I really can’t explain that yet. I have never seen a village like this with all round buildings. Everything is round. We found a place that we think was a bathing place, just like the Romans had, but then again… round. Why is everything round? I mean, I know a circle has different kinds of meaning. It represents the sun, God, infinity…. "

"Do you have any idea how long this place has been abandoned?" Jack asked.

"Well, according to what is left, I would say at least a thousand years. Maybe two thousand. We have not experienced bad weather on this planet yet, but if it has some, that could explain the damage done to those buildings." Suddenly, something occurred to him. He turned around to look at Sam.

"Sam! Did you notice anything strange about the entries of the buildings?"

Sam thought for a second, trying to remember what she had seen. Not able to guess what Daniel was getting at, she shrugged. 

Daniel looked over his shoulder to the village once more, to make sure he got his memories right.

"The direction, Sam. The direction. All the entries are directed…"

"To the north!" Sam suddenly understood. "Now that is strange…" she thought it over for a minute.

"Why do you think that is strange?" Teal’c asked her.

Daniel filled it in. "There are different kinds of cultures on Earth, who believe that their buildings should be placed in one direction. Only those cultures choose east, not north."

"You mean those people from India, who built their homes with natural material, like wood and grass? Isn’t that called Vedic architecture, or something?" Jack filled in.

Sam and Daniel looked stunned at him. Jack pulled a face. "Hey, come on. I do read a little. I also learned their method of meditation a long time ago. You know, the Vedic way of Kelno'reem…"

Sam smiled. She wondered how the Colonel would look, meditating. Somehow that didn’t seem to fit to his image. She was dying to know why he had learned it and if he still used these skills. She had never seen it, though. She also knew she would never dare to ask.

Daniel seemed to have missed the meaning of Jack's statement. He continued: "Yes, some cultures in the far East like India and Nepal are known for building with doors positioned towards the east. There are some Indian Natives who did the same in South-America. Anyway, the reason why they did that was to honour their God. I mean, a lot of cultures compare their God with light, the light with the sun and the sun happens to rise in the east. For the most part, they would have had low doors, so the people were forced to bow. Bow to the east, the sun and thus for their God. They…" Daniel suddenly grabbed his backpack and started to sound excited again. 

"Eh, Sam! Didn't the sun rise in the north on this planet?" He found his compass and quickly opened it.

"Yes! You are right. I should have thought about that! North is West." She moved over him to look at the compass, while Jack was looking rather sheepishly at her.

"For crying out loud, Captain.." he muttered.

"Sir. On Earth, the magnetic lines are from north to south. But here on P4R-548, the magnetic fields are in the west and east. So when our compass tells us where north is, it is actually the west." She looked at him, wondering if he understood what she was trying to tell him. 

"Right. I knew that," he stated, which meant he didn't. He was not gonna ask her how she had figured out that north was actually west.

"So the entries of those buildings are directed exactly as on Earth, Captain Carter." Teal'c figured, smiling at her.

"Yes, Teal'c. They are directed to where the sun rises. In the west, which is north on our compasses. So it remains similar to the cultures on Earth." 

"Okay, one question answered." Daniel closed his compass again and looked around at his three team-mates. "But that still leaves us with the other questions. Why have they left this place, and how. And, what's up north…"

"You mean west."

"Yeah, west. Like north on the compass, but actually west."

"How sweet. Tell you what. Why don't you try to get some answers to the first questions tomorrow, doing whatever you guys do on places like this. I will find out about the last question, by exploring a little THAT way." Jack pointed in the right direction, purposely avoiding using the term west or north.

Daniel was more than surprised. He had actually believed that they would have to get back to the Stargate by tomorrow. He had already planned to investigate a little further through the night, because he was not ready to give up yet. Now he realised that was not necessary.

"Jeez, thanks, Jack. I’d really love to spend another day here."

"You're welcome, Danny-boy. Now, who takes the first watch?" Jack switched their attention to the next task at hand. They divided the shifts and everybody except Sam started to get ready to get to their tents. After the usual goodnight wishes, they settled for the night.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Rise and shine, campers!" 

The Colonel, who had had the last watch, cheerfully awakened the team. The coffee was ready and soon they all gathered for breakfast. Nothing had disturbed their night.

They made their plans for the day. Daniel and Sam had lots of work to do at the village and Jack decided to hike up north. Or west. Or whatever. Teal'c offered to accompany him. Jack really couldn't turn that down, without offending him or the others. The Colonel normally wasn't fond of any other teammember walking out on his own, so it was only fair to let Teal'c come along. He accepted the offer and they would go together.

"Okay, Sir. As long as you go north, you are alright. It is actually west, but don't think about that. And go south on your way back and you will find us again." Sam explained to him.

"Yeah, yeah. If you thought I left my tracking-skills on Earth, think again. I was not planning to hike all the way around this planet anyway…" Jack waved her off, thinking of how he had travelled, hiked and even crawled around the world while she was probably still playing with dolls. "You just watch yourself and please, keep Daniel out of trouble for me, will-you?"

She smiled at him. "Yes Sir." Behind her, Daniel had heard the last words and started to protest, but he thought better of it. This was going to be a perfect day. He was anxious to pursue his research.

Leaving the cleaning up to Sam and Daniel, Jack shouldered his pack and said: "Have fun, kids. Teal'c, come on, let's get some exercise. Captain, Daniel, we will be back before you know it."

Teal'c was also ready. They waved to their colleagues and started heading north on their compass. Teal'c could have sworn he heard Daniel whisper: "pay attention to the Colonel for us". A slight grin was shown on his face, as he followed his CO.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was almost noon and Teal'c and Jack were about to turn around and hike back to the camp, when they suddenly found something. Big rocks, about 2 ft high, were spread out, forming a big circle with openings between them. It looked like a couple of rocks were missing from the circle, but the shape was still obvious. On some spots, two rocks next to each other were covered by a third, forming an up-side-down U. 

Jack removed the sunglasses from his face and replaced his cap on his head. "Wow, look at this. Nature couldn’t have done that."

Teal'c stood next to him and inspected the area. "No O'Neill. This was done on purpose by somebody. I do not know why."

They carefully walked around the circle, examining every rock with caution. They found some inscriptions on a couple of rocks, but most of them were plain. Teal'c gave the surroundings another look to make sure nothing would surprise them. He found nothing amiss. His symbiote was quiet, another sign that there was no immediate danger. Yet, this place made him feel uncomfortable, although he did not know why.

"Well, does this remind me of Stonehenge… " Jack muttered to himself. He kneeled down by one of the rocks with the inscription, not noticing the surprised look on the face of Teal'c. "Daniel will have to come and look at this. Is he ever going to be thrilled!"

"Shall I call him on the radio, O'Neill?" Teal'c wanted to know.

"Yeah, in a minute, Teal'c. In a minute. Let's take a closer look at those inscriptions here, so we can fill him in on what to expect. There are four of them." Jack moved around the rock and settled on his knees. Without thinking, he had entered the circle with that action.

Teal'c frowned. Since when was his CO interested in inscriptions in rocks? Had he been out in the sun too much? He shrugged. He was impressed by this gesture, though. This was the ultimate thing for O'Neill to do. Teal'c took stock of the man, who really seemed to be lost in thoughts at the sight of the inscription at hand. Teal'c had studied them from a greater distance. They seemed familiar to him somehow, he just didn't know why. 

Jack was studying the inscription closely. It looked like a butterfly to him, two triangles, connected together on one point. He slightly touched the inscription, feeling the grooves with his fingertips in an attempt to better remember. Suddenly, he felt a slight pulse of energy running through his fingers. With a surprised yelp, he backed off. "What the hell was that?"

The ground started to tremble and suddenly a beam of blue light emerged from the rock Jack had touched. It crossed the circle with a wide bow until it hit the rock opposite to it, also one with an inscription. Immediately, another beam of light emerged from the third rock with the inscription, making the same wide bow at right angles to the first beam. This one locked on the fourth inscripted rock. Each bow formed a perfect semicircular arch, together forming a dome. It had only taken a couple of seconds.

After the dome was formed, the blue light started to increase until it turned the sky royal blue. With a hissing sound, a fog filled up the dome. "O’Neill! Get out of the circle!" Teal’c yelled, suddenly not be able to see the Colonel anymore. The fog was too thick. Teal’c received no answer. He did not see the Colonel come out of the circle on this side, so he ran around it. But there was no Colonel there either. Without hesitation, he jumped into the fog. He landed in the middle of the circle. The fog disappeared as fast as it had come out. The blue light was suddenly gone. So was Colonel O’Neill.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Daniel had lost track of time. He had been searching all of the buildings. Based on what he had seen, he guessed the village had counted between 400 to 500 people. It was a relatively small population. He still had no idea what caused them to leave. He had found bits of pottery, all in and around one building, which answered his earlier question about the meals. It was obvious to him now that the people gathered for their meals too.

After finishing his search through the buildings, Daniel had searched the surroundings of the village and had found a small yard, where 24 stones marked the ground. There was 2 ft between every stone in a line, while the lines were about 3 ft apart. This must have been their cemetery. He carefully examined the stones, but found no inscriptions on them. Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t hear Sam approach him. "Hey, Daniel, what have you found?"

Daniel looked up at her. "Sam. I didn’t hear you. I think is where they buried their dead. Look at the pattern of the stones. Doesn’t that look like a cemetery to you?"

Sam looked around. "Aren’t the stones a little close together?" she asked.

"I don’t think so. I think they cremated their dead and buried their ashes. What have you come up with?"

"I took samples of the ground. I think I have found a spot where they had their vegetable garden. It is completely infertile. I took samples on different spots, in and outside the village and the results are all the same. If game was proving scarce, coupled with this, I’m pretty sure that nutrition was the reason for these people to leave." Sam looked at Daniel, wondering if he agreed with her.

"Well, that makes sense. Why stay in a place when there is nothing left to eat. They must have headed north. Maybe Jack and Teal’c will find something up there. Anyway, I’m starving. Let’s get back to our tents and have some lunch." They headed back to their camp. Daniel made coffee and fixed lunch. Soon after that, they sat down quietly, each enjoying their meal. They were nearly finished when they spotted a blue glow up north. 

"Eh, Sam! What is that?" Daniel asked the obvious question.

"I don’t know, but we better get in touch with the Colonel and Teal’c. Maybe they are in trouble." Sam stood to fetch the radio.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jack had received an electric shock through his right arm. It had left him shaking all over, not really alert to what happened around him. A sharp flash of pain shot through his shoulder. He was barely aware of the blue beams of light above his head. The minute he heard Teal’c yell to get out of the circle, it felt as if the floor underneath him just opened up. He fell backwards into the gap so fast, he didn’t even have time to cry out. ‘Way to go, O’Neill,’ he thought. While falling, he realised his surroundings looked a lot like the wormholes they travelled through. But this could not be a wormhole, now could it? Unless somebody had disguised the huge Stargate as a circle of rocks….

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Teal’c sat up in surprise. There was no sign of the Colonel, nor any sign of what had happened just a minute ago. He would not have believed this if he had not witnessed it himself. "O’Neill! Where are you?" he yelled out loud, while getting to his feet. Not really expecting an answer, he started to search for his CO. There was no sign of him. 

The radio burst into life. "Colonel, Teal’c. Come in please.," Sam’s voice. Teal’c grabbed his radio to answer her.

"Captain Carter. Colonel O’Neill is missing. He disappeared in a blue light." Teal’c kept his report short and simple.

"Yes. We saw the blue illumination in the sky. What was that? What happened to the Colonel?" Sam sounded really worried now.

"We found a circle of rocks. Colonel O’Neill was inspecting an inscription on one of the rocks. After he touched it, two blue beams of light emerged. There was a fog. It then disappeared, as did the Colonel." Teal’c filled her in.

Sam decided that she and Daniel would come up north. Teal’c gave her the directions and they agreed that he would continue to search the area around the circle. The Captain and Daniel Jackson would hurry, but it would still take them at least an hour and a half to get there, he estimated. 

"Okay. We will see you then. Don’t touch anything, Teal’c. Call us on the radio, if you detect anything that might cause trouble." With that, they ended their conversation.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **SGC, alternate universe** ).

The Stargate in the SGC started to turn. The alarms went off. Lieutenant Graham Simmons grabbed the intercom. "Incoming traveller, incoming traveller!"

General Hammond ran into the control room. "Who is it?" he asked the Lieutenant.

"We have only SG3 off world, Sir. There is no authorisation code. It is only one person, Sir." Lieutenant Simmons looked at the General, wondering if he had to open the iris or not.

"Let’s see who this person is and what he wants, Sir." Colonel Frank Cromwell had entered the control room as well.

The General thought it over for a second and nodded. "Open the iris, Lieutenant." He grabbed the intercom. "Maximum defence to the Gateroom. We have an unauthorised incoming traveller." He turned to the Colonel. "Colonel, to the Gateroom". Colonel Cromwell was already running.

In the Gateroom, a team of heavily armed soldiers guarded the ramp, rifles pointed at the establishing wormhole. Colonel Cromwell joined them. The iris was open as they waited for the unidentified traveller. The SGC had not had unidentified visitors for a long time. No attacks either, but they were ready for anything.

They didn’t have to wait for long. Suddenly, the traveller came through. Backwards. Fast. He landed hard on his back then rolled over a couple of times. The traveller groaned. His landing ended at the beginning of the ramp, where he tried to sit up, still dizzy from his journey. "Well, THAT was different!" Jack had recognised the SGC. He was not surprised by the sight of the armed soldiers. He felt relieved that the General had decided to open the iris. He gave the man in front of him a weak smile and got to his feet. At least, he tried. The Gateroom was still spinning and he swayed unsteadily on his feet. 

The airman in front of him grabbed him by his arm. "Jack?" Colonel Cromwell couldn’t believe his eyes and his confusion was obvious. He signalled for the team to lower their weapons. The team did so, but stayed, ready to respond to any kind of trouble.

Jack vaguely recognised the voice. It brought back memories… This could not be happening. The man was dead. Shocked, he looked up to the man in front of him and realised something was very, very wrong.

"Frank?" he whispered, a deep frown on his face. "This is impossible." He took a good look around. The SGC looked the same. He recognised the faces of some of the soldiers around him. The control room was similar to what he remembered. The General stood there, behind Lieutenant Simmons. Everything looked exactly the same. He looked back at the Colonel in front of him. Colonel Cromwell was speechless. It was only when Jack noticed something on the man’s sleeve that he knew for sure this was not Earth. Or at least not HIS Earth. Colonel Frank Cromwell had the SG1-emblem on his sleeve.

Colonel Frank Cromwell had to force himself to say something. He studied the man in front of him. This could not be true, could it? The man was dead, yet here he was. A little bit more grey than he remembered. There was some blood running from the man’s nose, but he didn’t seem to notice that. A burned spot marked his shoulder. That aside, it was definitely him. Jack O’Neill. "Jack." He shook his head in frustration. "You are supposed to be dead." 

While he said that, Frank closed his eyes for a second. He remembered another time, another place, where he also had thought Jack was dead. A terrible mistake, with tremendous consequences for the both of them. He could not have made the same mistake twice, could he?

"Heard that before. I’m surprisingly hard to kill, you know. But to return the favour: you are also supposed to be dead." Jack answered. Frank looked up at him, frowning.

At that point, Major Carter ran into the Gateroom. She stood next to Colonel Cromwell and studied the man in front of her. "Colonel O’Neill, Sir! Holy Hannah, it is really you!" 

"For crying out loud, Carter! What did you do to your hair this time?" Jack couldn’t help himself. This Carter had a haircut like himself, short. Maybe even shorter than his. Although it looked great on her, he still preferred the way HIS Carter wore her hair. 

Major Carter ran her hand through her hair, confusion on her face. "What is the matter, Sir? My hair has been like this for years."

Jack was glad she had joined them. It would be easier to explain the situation to her. She would understand. "Of course you have, Cap… er Major. I’m sorry. I am not the Jack O’Neill you know. I am from an alternate reality. My Carter is a Captain and has longer hair." He looked at her face. She got the picture as fast as he knew she would.

"An alternate universe! Of course! There have been theories about interdimensional transport to alternate realities for a long time. So you are telling me, that you came from an alternate universe? Incredible!" she was getting all excited.

A voice through the intercom interrupted their conversation. "Colonel Cromwell? What the hell is going on? Who is this man?" the General sounded irritated.

Major Carter turned to him. "Sir. This is Colonel O’Neill. He came from an alternate universe. This is not OUR Colonel O’Neill. Remember, he is dead."

"I KNOW he is dead, Major. Get this man checked out in the infirmary and report to me A.S.A.P. I like to hear you explain how a man who is supposed to be dead came through that wormhole to my SGC."

"Yes Sir." She replied. Major Carter turned back to the others. She was about to say something, but Colonel Cromwell interrupted her.

"I will take the Colonel to the infirmary, Major. You had better report to the General."

"Yes Sir. I will do that. Get that nose looked at, Sir." She said to Colonel O’Neill, whose nose was still bleeding. With that, she left the Gateroom and headed to the General’s office. The team of soldiers left as well, leaving Frank and Jack alone in the Gateroom. 

Frank grabbed a tissue and offered it to Jack. Jack accepted it and wiped his nose with it. "Let’s go see Doctor Fraiser." Frank said. Jack nodded and followed him to the infirmary. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meeting Janet Fraiser had been another weird experience. She had the same haircut as Major Carter. He had asked her if there was a rule about women’s hair in the military, but she had denied that. 

Janet had been shocked at first to see him. He had tried to explain to her about alternate realities, but she didn’t understand a lot of it. The only thing that mattered to her was that he was not THEIR O’Neill, although he looked a lot like him. It was also hard for her to believe there was another Janet in this other universe, with obviously longer hair. 

She had been able to stop the blood running from his nose. It was a direct result of his ungraceful landing on the ramp. Making sure his nose was not broken, she turned her attention to his right shoulder. "What happened?" she asked him, pointing at his shoulder.

Jack thought for a second. "I don’t really know," he said. Janet helped him to lift his shirt over his head. He hissed in pain at the movement. "I touched an inscription on a rock and received some kind of electrical shock through my fingers. Suddenly two beams of light emerged from the rocks. Maybe they hit me? I don’t remember."

Janet examined his fingers. She found nothing wrong there. She studied his shoulder more carefully. It was a huge burn. The skin was damaged, dark red an even black at some spots. She could see a pattern there. The black spots formed a straight line. "I think you are right. I will have to clean this. It is going to hurt. You might want to lay down. After that, I’ll have to run some other tests. You know the drill."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **Back on P4R-548** ).

Sam and Daniel had made good progress. It had taken them only one hour and 40 minutes to reach the circle. Teal'c was waiting for them. He had searched the area around the place, but had found no sign of the Colonel. Teal'c explained to them what had happened and pointed out the rock Jack had touched before his disappearance. 

Daniel walked around the circle, studying it closely. "This is very interesting," he said to himself. "Look at those inscriptions. They seem familiar to me somehow. Why are there only four of them? Four. What means four? There are four basic elements. Fire, Earth, Air and Water, but I don't see the connection. " He studied the circle again. "The four rocks form a cross in the circle. Alright, that means something. That could be symbolic of the human existence. Birth, Life, Death, Immortality. Very, very interesting." Daniel was lost in his thoughts.

Sam knelt beside the rock Jack had touched. She made sure she didn’t step into the circle. She also had the feeling she had seen it before. "Daniel. Come and take a look at this one. This is a Stargate glyph, mirrored," she suddenly saw it. Two triangles connected at one point. 

Daniel approached her and looked over her shoulder. "Yes, you are right! That is Canis Minor. Let's see if we can figure out the others." Together, they moved over to the next inscription. "So if we mirror this, Sam, these are two glyphs! See?" Daniel grabbed his notebook and wrote down: 'First artefact: 31. Second artefact 34 - 32.' He rushed to the third rock, Sam close behind him. "What do you make out of these?" he asked her. 

Sam studied the inscription closely. "I think this has to be Centaurus. What about the other half?" 

"Bootes, Sam. Two times. So there are three glyphs here." He wrote 'Third artefact: 5 - 4 - 4.' It didn't take them long to figure out the last one. He wrote 'Fourth artefact: 13 - 35'. "What could that mean? Eight glyphs, That would not be a Stargate address, now would it?" he asked out loud.

"That makes no sense. The point of origin of this planet is Perseus. There is no Perseus among them. Why are there eight glyphs?" Sam was thinking hard. "Othala had 8 glyphs. Remember the Asgards? The Colonel reprogrammed the computer for that, but we still need the point of origin. That's not here. So why these glyphs? What do they mean?"

Daniel sat down. "Where the hell is Jack? Why did he touch the inscription anyway? He hates it when I do that. What the hell was he thinking?" He looked frustrated at his notes, hoping to find a clue there. 

Teal'c joined him. "You say the glyphs are mirrored. Could it be possible, O'Neill entered an alternate universe?" 

Sam looked up. "Not likely, Teal'c. There is no quantum mirror here. Maybe the beams of light took him some place else. A ship? Somewhere else on this planet? God, I wish I knew."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **SGC. Alternate universe** ).

Twenty minutes later, they all arrived in the briefing room. Jack’s shoulder was expertly bandaged. He had swallowed some of the painkillers Janet had offered him. They had given him a new shirt, too.

The General welcomed them. He shook Jack’s hand. "Nice to meet you, Colonel. Is there another me in your reality?" he just had to ask.

Jack grinned. "Yes, Sir. He is…. quite alright." Sam suppressed a smile, while the General nodded, still having trouble believing this alternate reality-stuff.

"Okay. Doctor Fraiser, report please." The General turned his attention to the petite Doctor.

"Yes, Sir. The Colonel here is fine. He has a nasty burn on his shoulder, which will heal with the proper treatment. All the tests I have run turned out fine. He is not a Goa'uld, although he has a Goa'uld-entry mark in his neck, just like Colonel Cromwell." Janet said.

"What? You met Hathor too?" Frank asked in surprise.

Jack shrugged. "I thought the lovely Queen chose me for my looks. Guess I was wrong." Frank pulled a face. Sam suppressed another smile. The General got their attention back. 

"So he is clear? Colonel O'Neill, can you explain to us again what happened, before you came through our Stargate?" he asked.

Jack nodded. He once again told them what had happened. He also gave Sam the co-ordinates of the planet they had gated too. He didn’t know the glyphs, but his Sam had taught him to at least remember the numbers. That way, he would always be able to figure out the glyphs.

Major Sam Carter wrote them down. She listened carefully to his explanation of their earlier experience with a quantum mirror. That brought them back to the two most important questions. Where was the quantum mirror in this situation and how did he ended up in a wormhole to this Earth without a Stargate. Naturally, they could only guess. 

"Okay. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to figure out a way to get the Colonel back to his own reality. Don’t worry, Sir." She said to Colonel O’Neill directly.

"Oh, I don’t, Major. I just know you will think of something." Jack smiled at her and watched her leave. He turned back to the others. " She will. She’s.."

"Way smarter than the both of us. I know." Frank filled in.

"Colonel Cromwell. Why don’t you keep our guest company until Major Carter comes up with something." With that, the General ended the meeting and headed back to his office.

"Guess that leaves you and me. Want to join me for some coffee?" Frank asked, feeling uncomfortable with the whole situation.

"Why not." Jack followed the man. 

They walked through the corridors of the SGC when suddenly a small white dog passed them, barking out loud. Jack looked over his shoulder, surprise on his face. "Are dogs allowed here?" he asked.

"No. Not really. But the General is babysitting this one. It belongs to his niece. He keeps Buffy in his office, but she is a little faster than the old man." Frank explained.

"I didn't know he liked dogs. Buffy? Who would want to call a dog Buffy?" Jack said.

"Probably because his little niece is a fan of this vampire-thing. I wonder who gets ordered to catch the stupid dog this time. You should have seen Teal'c the last time. It was SO funny!" 

Apparently, Lieutenant Simmons got lucky this time. He came running around the corner, calling out the dog's name. Jack surpressed a smile and Frank just shook his head.

They reached the coffee-machine and Frank filled two cups. They found a quiet spot to sit down. Neither of them spoke for a while, not really know what to say. Jack found it hard to keep his emotions under control. He knew this man was not the Frank Cromwell he had known, but it was hard to keep the distance. His anger and frustration were all too present. Feelings he had suppressed a long time ago, after the man had died. He wanted to start yelling at him, but somehow that made no sense at all. He finished his coffee and absently squeezed the plastic cup into a ball.

Frank tried to shake off his own uncomfortable feelings. He had never had the chance to talk to Jack about what had happened. But now, it seemed like a second chance to him. If only he knew what was going on in the other man’s mind. He looked fragile at this point. Frank noticed the way he squeezed his cup. He also knew how the man dealt with his problems; by keeping them inside until it would destroy him. He needed to be very careful. One mistake and Jack would end the conversation. He had done that before. Too many times. Frank shifted in his seat.

"So I’m dead in your reality, right?" he asked.

"Yep." Was the short reply.

"How?"

"Oh, now, that might be a little difficult to explain. You were … kinda sucked into a black hole…" Jack shivered at the memory. That had been another black day in his life. Letting go of his friend and enemy at that point was the worst thing that could happen.

"Oh. In our reality, YOU got sucked in." Frank said, also trying hard to fight off bad memories.

Jack looked up at him, surprised.

"It was the worst day in my life. Letting you go like that." Frank muttered.

"I know the feeling." 

"I mean: I had let you down once before. I left you behind while I shouldn't have. I promised myself that one day, I would make it up to you, or at least try. I wanted to save you so desperately. I just couldn't loose you again. But it was no use. There was no way I could have held on to you. The force of the black hole…." Frank was beyond speech now. His hands were shaking and he could not face Jack for the moment, so he stared at the wall instead.

Jack had been listening to these words in silence. He felt his anger disappear for now. The way Frank had described how he had tried to hold on, it was just too understandable. Hell, he had given everything he had and he couldn't hold on to Frank in his own fight with the black hole. He could all too well understand the way the other man felt. 

"The damn thing sucked the whole iris in, Frank. You are not to blame. Believe me, I know." He said softly.

"But that still doesn't make me sleep better at night, Jack. With that, our opportunity to deal with our past was gone. I should have forced you to talk to me after Iraq, but I didn't. I tried it a couple of times, but when you closed the door in my face, it was just too easy to let go. I waited for 7 years for you to come to talk to me. I was a coward. I KNEW you wouldn't do that by yourself from the beginning. I should have been the one to keep coming to you, not matter how many times you shut me out. I should have been there for you. But I choose to be a coward." Frank hit the table with his fist out of frustration. 

"I wouldn't have allowed you to come close. I was too pissed off, Frank. I would have yelled so hard at you… " Jack started, remembering their conversation in the Gateroom while waiting to set the timer of the bomb. 

"You had every right to be pissed, Jack! Don't you see! I should have let you yell at me. I should have let you break every window of my car, of my house! Hell, I even should have let you break my nose or jaw if it would have made you feel better! We were friends, Jack. I was responsible for what happened and I didn’t do enough to make things up to you. To us. When I finally realised that, it was too late. Isn't that ironic?" Frank lowered his head in his hands, not knowing what to say anymore.

Jack was silent for a long time. It was hard for him to keep his own emotions under control. He had never thought about the way Frank must have felt at all. He had been too busy being furious at him; blaming him for leaving him behind. Hating him so much, he never wanted to look at him again in his life. Still, after he had lost Frank, he had been devastated. About the loss of an old friend; for the loss of a chance to ever make things right between them; for his failure. Although he knew there was nothing he could have done. He sighed heavily.

"Is that why you took command of SG1?" he asked, suddenly realising the answer.

"Yes. It was the least I could do. I was watching you for those 7 years, Jack. I knew every move you made. I knew how important SG1 was to you and how seriously you took your responsibilities. How you couldn’t allow yourself to leave someone behind too. I figured it was only fair to take your place and make sure nothing would happen to your team. I watch out for them, Jack. That is my way to make it up to you. To keep your people safe, because you are not there to do that anymore. I couldn’t save you, but you can be damn sure I won't let anything happen to them."

Jack sniffled. "No regrets about that? I mean, keeping Daniel out of trouble is almost impossible!"

That brought a smile to Frank's face. "You got that right. The geek manages to vanish in front of your very eyes…"

They were both silent for a while, each lost in his own thoughts. Absently, Frank got up to get them another cup of coffee and handed one cup to Jack. Jack took it from him, without a word.

After a while, Jack broke the silence. "I hated you, Frank. I really, really hated you. I couldn't forgive you. I couldn't talk to you. Hell, I couldn't even look at you for a long time. But… " Jack fell silent again, searching for the strength to continue. 

Frank looked at him, frowning. Wondering what would come next; not daring to interrupt Jack for fear it would close him down once more. So, he waited patiently. 

"When we had our little confrontation before the bomb went off… it actually felt good to yell at you. To let out all the frustration and all of the anger that was burning inside of me for so long. It was a start. Like you said, we didn't get the chance to finish it. That left me hating myself more than I hated you. I should not have shut you out, like I did. I had no right…. but it was too late." Jack sighed again.

"Jack, I never blamed you for that." Frank whispered.

Jack snorted. "Well, if it makes you feel any better: I never blamed you for not coming to me. I didn't want you to, at that time. Guess I was not ready for that." He looked up at Frank for the first time during their conversation. "I am glad that at least one Cromwell and one O'Neill in the entire universe got a second chance to talk. I don't know about you, but it certainly gives me some peace of mind…"

"Me too, Jack. Me too." Frank agreed. 

They both finished their coffee, not knowing what to say anymore. Somewhere, somebody turned on a radio. Jack shivered. He recognised the song on the radio. He recognised it all too well. He squeezed his cup again and threw in against the wall this time. After that, he sighed heavily.

Frank watched him, not knowing what had caused this. Suddenly he remembered. He had, without Jack's knowledge, read his file. It mentioned one of the Iraqi guards humming 'Don't worry, be happy' every time he beat the hell out of his prisoners. Some sick sense of humour. "You want me to turn that down?" he asked softly.

Jack shook his head. "No. It is just another song. It is my problem that it brings back bad memories. I just have to unlock the connection between them…"

"You make that sound so easy," Frank wondered.

"Hey! Not me. That's what that stupid shrink kept telling me. Eight shattered dinner plates and a broken kitchen window. Does that sound easy enough for you?" Jack snorted.

"Sorry." Came the short reply.

"Don't. Didn't like the damn plates anyway."

"Oh."

"The problem is, Sarah loved them. It was a gift from her grandmother…."

"Oh, oh."

"Yeah. Well, you know. Life is hard and then you die. I guess I just should have died there. It would have saved the Government a lot of money and a bunch of people a lot of trouble, including me."

Frank didn't know how to respond to that. He wanted so badly to deny that statement, but couldn’t find the words. At that moment, Major Sam Carter entered the room.

"I think I found it, Sir. I was afraid that if we would just dial up to P4R-548, you would step through the real Stargate on that planet. I am not sure that would get you back to your reality. So I dug a little in the computer and was able to extract the co-ordinates of the location you came from. It is almost the same as P4R-548," she looked at him, to figure out he was still with her. "I will spare you the details, Sir, but I am pretty sure this is it. So, whenever you're ready, Sir."

"Nice job, Carter. As always." Jack said to her. "Okay. Time to go home." With that, he got up and they all headed to the Gateroom.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **Back on P4R-548** ).

It was getting later in the afternoon. A beam of sunshine suddenly blinded Daniel. He blinked his eye, wondering where it came from. He moved his head out of it. "Eh, Sam! I think I just found your quantum mirror!"

He got up and walked over to one of the inscripted artefacts. Sam and Teal'c followed him. Daniel took his knife and started scraping carefully over the artefact. The upper layer let go easily and underneath he found the mirror. "Well, that was carefully hidden." he mumbled.

Sam was amazed. "So we can certainly assume that the Colonel touched the mirror. With that, he probably entered an alternate reality. Why hasn't he returned? I mean, he knew Daniel got back to our reality by touching the mirror again back on P3R-233." She ran her hand through her hair. Somehow it still didn't make sense to her.

Teal'c frowned. "I agree. O'Neill would not have walked back to the Stargate."

"Unless he was forced to somehow." Daniel added, not really knowing what that could have been. 

Sam sat down again. "Okay. Let's start over. What have we got? A deserted planet. A deserted village. Some symbolic circle with a quantum mirror. Why? Why have the ancients built a Stargate on this planet? Why is there a quantum mirror? What do those 8 glyphs mean?"

"There could have been more villages without us finding them, Captain Carter." Teal'c remarked.

"Yes. That is possible. We don't know for sure if this village was the only one." Daniel admitted. 

Sam's face suddenly lightened up. "Daniel! Give me your notes. I want to look at those co-ordinates again."

Daniel handed her his notebook. She read the numbers out loud. "31 - 34 - 32 - 5 - 4 - 4 - 13 - 35," she thought for a second. "Remember the Colonel wrote down a formula in base-8-math? He wrote down: ten equals eight. Remember?" Daniel and Teal'c nodded, not knowing where she was getting at.

"What would 31 be in the octonal system? 10 equals eight, 20 equals sixteen, 30 equals twenty-four, so that makes 31 actually twenty-five. Does twenty-five mean anything?"

Daniel thought for a second. "The twenty-fifth glyph is Perseus and that is the point of origin of this planet! Way to go, Sam!" He shook his head in disbelief. Sam had actually done it again.

Teal'c continued. "If 31 equals twenty-five, does that make 34 twenty-eight?"

Sam nodded. "Yes. What else have we got? 32 would be twenty-six. 5 stays five, so does 4. 13 would be eleven and 35 equals twenty-nine." She drew the numbers with her fingers in the sand. 25 - 28 - 26 - 5 - 4 - 4 - 11 - 29. 

"Sam, except for the two fours, those are the co-ordinates of Earth…" Daniel recognised the numbers easily.

"Which glyph did we miss? Thirty-six. Thirty-six in the octonal system would be," Sam calculated fast, "44! There are only 39 glyphs, so they used two fours! Guess we solved the riddle. But what does that tell us?" she wondered.

Teal'c summarised: "We have the co-ordinates of Earth. We have the point of origin of this planet. We have a quantum mirror. We do not have Colonel O'Neill."

"We also don't have a Stargate and we don't have a DHD." Daniel added, frowning. "Do we?" He looked over his shoulder at the circle of rocks. Sam followed his gaze and read his thoughts. "It could be the right size, Sam."

This was all too weird. Sam sighed heavily. "Suppose it is. In that case the inscriptions are representing the DHD and there is only one address to dial; like a programmed default value. That means the Colonel entered the alternate universe by touching the mirror and fell through a wormhole to an alternate Earth. Jeez! Wouldn't he just love that?"

"How can he return to us? Do they just have to dial up to P4R-548, or what?" Daniel wondered.

"I believe that would take him through the Stargate we came through, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c figured.

"I think so, too. If only they are able to figure out the co-ordinates the Colonel came in with." Sam thought out loud.

"Well, Sam, if there is another you, you most certainly will." Daniel said self-confidence. "So, all we have to do is wait."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **SGC. Alternate universe** ).

A lot of people had gathered in the Gateroom. The General, Doctor Janet Fraiser, Daniel, Teal'c, Major Carter and Colonel Cromwell. They all wanted to say goodbye. Jack shook the General's hand first. Janet gave him a slight kiss on his cheek. "Let my twin sister take another look at that shoulder. We don't want it to get infected." He smiled at her. "No, we don't. Thanks, Janet."

Daniel and Teal'c shook his hand, not really believing what was happening yet. They had just arrived and were filled in by Major Carter. Something suddenly occurred to Jack. He turned back to Daniel. "Daniel. The Romans. What can you tell me about their buildings?"

Daniel had no idea where this was going. He thought for a second. "Well, their buildings were all round, Jack. Why?"

"Just asking. Why round?"

"Well. Circles have different kinds of meaning. But in this case, I think it symbolised eternity. A circle is a never ending, perfect symbol. The Egyptians pointed that out with a snake biting his own tale, the oroborus. It has neither a beginning, nor an end. Nor a direction. So: eternity." 

Jack nodded. He was pleased with the answer. Next, he shook Major Carter's hand. "Thank you, Major. It was an honour. Again." 

She smiled at him. "Thank you, Sir. Oh, I don't really know if you will have to touch that inscription again on P4R-548. But if you do, don't let the beams hit you again, Sir." 

Jack turned to Frank. Both men looked each other sincerely in the eye. "Thank you. For talking. For listening. Thanks for looking after my team. I appreciate that." 

"You're welcome, Jack. Take care." Frank shook his hand. "Oh, and when your Captain gets promoted…. Don't bother preparing a speech. You won't …. really need it." Behind him, Sam started to laugh out loud. Jack had no clue what they were talking about and thought better of asking. He walked up the ramp, raised his hand as a last greeting and stepped through.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( **Back on P4R-548** ).

The three SG1 team members were seated near the circle, still talking about their discovery, when suddenly the blue beams of light emerged again. Like before, they formed a dome. The fog was spread out, leaving Daniel and Sam holding their breath. Teal'c was not that surprised; he had witnessed it before.

The blue lights faded and the fog cleared away. They all heard a too familiar groan and saw the Colonel in the middle of the circle, struggling to sit up.

Sam rushed over. "Colonel! Are you alright?" She grabbed him by the arm to help him up. She pointed at his bandaged shoulder. "What’s wrong with your shoulder, Sir?"

Jack raised his hand. "Captain! You did it! I'm back. Yes! I'm fine. The beam of light hit me. Nothing to worry about." He got to his feet and moved out of the circle. "Well, that was really something," he said, mostly to himself.

"Jack! Have you been to an alternate reality?" Daniel couldn't wait to hear it.

"You guys figured that out? Oh, yes, Daniel. It was SO weird. Major Carter with a haircut like me, can you believe that?"

"I was a Major in that reality? Jeez, guess I'll have to talk to the General about that." Sam said. She briefly touched her hair. "Short? Like that, Sir?" she shook her head, not wanting to think about cutting her hair like that. "I would never cut my hair like that," she murmured.

"We need to go back to our camp. It will soon get dark." Teal’c motioned them. Everybody nodded and they headed back to their camp. Jack didn’t talk much during the journey; he seemed lost in his thoughts. Not wanting to disturb him, the others held their questions for later.

Back at their camp, they gathered around the fire. Jack told them shortly what had happened, without mentioning Colonel Cromwell. He listened to Daniel, who explained how they had found the quantum mirror and the co-ordinates to Earth. He waved Captain Carter off when she was about to check his shoulder. He told her it could wait, as they would go home in the morning. He listened for a while to their conversation. When Daniel again wondered about the round buildings, he said: "Eternity, Daniel. It symbolises eternity. Like the oroborus, the snake biting its own tale. The people of this planet left this place the same way I did and started a new life on the alternate Earth." When he saw the stunned expression on Daniel's face, he added: "Hey, I asked somebody. Somebody smarter than you. You know, an archaeologist. He looks just like you, kind of a geek, named Daniel…. ring any bells?" 

Jack missed the rest of the conversation. He was also unaware of the exchange of looks between his team-mates. They knew there was more to the story he had just told them, but they knew better than to ask. Maybe in time the Colonel would tell them. 

Jack looked at the stars, lost in his thoughts again. He always did when his memories started to haunt him. He had spent too many nights at home on his roof looking at the stars. He had even given particular stars names. Names of people he had loved and lost. Charlie. Kawalsky, Henry Boyd… Hell, he even had named one star after Daniel. On more than one occasion. He decided to find one for Frank Cromwell the minute he would come home. Tired as he was, he excused himself and went to bed.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Incoming travellers, incoming travellers!" Lieutenant Graham Simmons’ voice was heard over the intercom. The alarm bells went off and the General rushed to the control room. 

"Do we have a signal?" he asked.

"Yes Sir. It is SG1’s code." Lieutenant Simmons said, when they were able to detect the code.

"Open the iris," the General ordered. With that, he headed to the Gateroom, to welcome his first team personally.

The wormhole established and soon after that, SG1 stepped through. They walked over to the General and Colonel O’Neill and Captain Carter saluted. 

"Sir. Nothing of interest to report. Teal'c did not make new friends this time. Daniel dug up an ancient city. Carter solved some base-8-math equations. Oh, I forgot. I kinda touched a quantum mirror. That's all, Sir."

At that moment, the door to the Gateroom opened and Sergeant Siler came through. With him, a small white dog ran into the Gateroom, barking out loud. Sam looked surprised. She knew dogs were not allowed at the facility. Daniel smiled at the sight of the dog. Teal'c frowned, like usual. The General looked irritated as he glanced over his shoulder. He was only baby-sitting this stupid dog for one day now and the animal had caused him more trouble he could handle. 

"Hey, Buffy!" Jack knelt and Buffy ran straight towards his outstretching hands. Jack didn't notice the stunned look on the faces of the people around him. He pat the dog on its back. "Managed to escape the General's attention again, now did you?" 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The end.

  


* * *

>   
> © May 26, 2001  
> The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp.  
> The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters  
> who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names,   
> titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television,   
> Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd.   
> Partnership.  
> This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and   
> solely meant for entertainment.   
> All other characters, the story idea and the story itself   
> are the sole property of the author.   
> 

  


* * *

##### This is just something that was messing with my mind after watching A matter of time too many times. What would there be left to say between Jack and Frank? Thanks to Tanya again. Thanks to my husband too, for letting me write. Reference: "Life is hard and then you die" is from Dempsey and Makepeace. 

* * *

  



End file.
